A Lockhart Free Valentine's Day
by Carrie H Potter
Summary: sequel to A Very Merry Hogwarts Christmas Becky is back at Hogwarts with her best friend, Carrie. When the future of the Valentine’s Dance is in question, will Becky be able to save the day? HPOC DMOC


**A Lockhart-Free Valentine's Day**

**By: **Carrie H Potter

**Rating: **PG (K+)

**Pairing: **HP/OC; DM/OC

**Genre: **Humor/Romance

**Summary:** (sequel to _A Very Merry Hogwarts Christmas)_ Becky is back at Hogwarts with her best friend, Carrie. When the future of the Valentine's Dance is in question, will Becky be able to save the day? (HP/OC DM/OC)

**Disclaimer: **I don't own any of the Harry Potter characters. The story, however, is my own, my _preciousssss_ (LOTR rocks!).

**A/N:** yay!…it's the sequel to _A Very Merry Hogwarts Christmas_!…i know it's not exactly Valentine's Day anymore and this is long overdue…but Becky's birthday is May 10…so i wrote this for her as a little present…HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BECK! anyway…you should really read _A Very Merry Hogwarts Christmas_ before you read this cause i don't explain everything in here and you may get confused…and again, this was just a gift for my friend, so you may not get all the jokes and all that jazz…i hope you enjoy and yes…Carrie Russo _is_ me (though I'm not _that_ ditzy)…yay for me!

**A Lockhart-Free Valentine's Day**

Harry Potter scratched his head thoughtfully. She was late. Now this greatly surprised Harry. His girlfriend of a little under two months was hardly ever late. No, forget that. She was _never_ late. Every letter he sent her was replied to in under a day. He was just about to point this out to his three best friends when the main doors of the school burst open, and two very frazzled girls barreled in, one laughing hysterically.

He recognized the pretty blonde girl and smiled brightly. He started to move forward but paused when the odd brunette just kept laughing. The blonde eyed her warily and rolled her eyes, "Carrie, if you don't stop laughing, I'm gonna choke you to death. I _swear_."

The brunette looked up at her and just laughed harder, "But it's just so funny! You almost broke the guy's arm! I gotta meet this Harry fellow and make sure he's good enough for you. Cause I don't think _anyone_ is worth the trouble of a lawsuit…" she started chuckling again at her own joke.

The blonde sighed and raised her eyes, spotting Harry in the process, "Harry!" and she launched herself at him.

Harry grinned and caught her, swinging her around, "Oh, Beck, I've missed you _so_ much! It hasn't been two months, it's been _years_."

Rebecca Smith smiled at her boyfriend, "Uh-huh, it has been." She looked back at her friend who was still snickering under her breath, "Carrie, you idiot, get your ass over here."

The brunette, Caroline Russo as it were, sauntered over and winked, "Howdy, y'all. I'm Carrie, Becky's best friend. I'm here to meet…" she caught sight of a tall blonde boy standing a few feet away, "YOU!" and she scurried over to his side.

The boy smirked, "Hi. Draco Malfoy. Nice to finally meet you, my dear." Draco took her hand and kissed it, while Becky and Harry looked on, rolling their eyes. Carrie squealed with delight.

"Oh God," Becky muttered, "what was I thinking when I suggested those two getting together?"

Harry grinned, "I have absolutely no idea." Becky hit him on the arm.

"Ow!" he yelped, "why does everyone always hit me?"

"Because you deserve it," Becky smirked (damn-it! Draco's mannerisms rule all!) and took his arm to drag him into the Great Hall.

But when Harry saw where they were headed, he stopped abruptly, "You don't want to go in there."

"Why not?" Becky demanded, eager to absorb as much of Hogwarts as she could in her short visit.

"Lockhart's back," Harry muttered as if that should explain everything.

"And?" Becky pressed on, quite puzzled.

"You know what he did on his last Valentine's Day here," Harry said, wincing slightly.

And Becky did know, thanks to her near memorization of all the books from the Harry Potter series. "What? Are there pink flowers and confetti everywhere? Dwarfs dressed as cupids? Whatever it is, I can take it." One thing about Becky after she met Harry was her increased confidence in herself. She was no longer the shy girl who had first dropped into the seventh year Gryffindor boy's dormitory the previous Christmas. She was now a brave, sassy girl with the Boy-Who-Lived as her boyfriend. And with that in mind, she proceeded to throw open the doors of the Great Hall. She took one look around the room and then stumbled back into Harry's strong arms. "W-w-what _is_ this? Why'd they ever let him out of St. Mungo's?"

Harry shrugged, "Dunno. He got better, I guess."

"That man will _never_ get better," Becky grumbled, still staring in horror at the scene in front of her. The Great Hall was filled to bursting with huge red roses, and glittery pink confetti was raining down from the ceiling onto tables piled high with pink and red food. But that wasn't the worst of it: small versions of Lockhart were flying around in little togas, twanging little harps, and throwing candy hearts at random people.

"Oh my God," Carrie muttered, walking up next to them with Draco's arm slung around her shoulder.

"I know," Becky said sympathetically, "isn't it horri…"

"This is GREAT!" Carrie shouted as she dragged Draco past them into the sugary sweet chaos. Draco glanced back at them and winked.

Becky sighed and shook her head, "I don't even know why I hang out with her anymore."

"Maybe because she's been your friend for years?" Harry suggested helpfully.

Becky rolled her eyes, "Yea, that must be it."

Harry grinned and held his arm out, "Shall we?"

"Must we?" Becky asked with a pained look on her face. Harry nodded. Becky groaned and took the proffered arm so that Harry could usher her grandly into the hall.

Heads turned as they walked towards Harry's normal spot at the Gryffindor table. But what greeted them turned Becky's stomach almost as much as the lurid decorations did. Sitting on the bench that was facing them was Draco with a lap full of Carrie, and they were making out with relish.

"Geez, Carrie," Becky exclaimed, "you just met the guy and you're already sticking your tongue down his throat?"

Carrie giggled, "I know, but we've been writing to each other for two months and well," she giggled again, "you'll find that Draco can be _very_ persuasive when he wants to be."

Harry laughed, "Yea, that he can be. You have _no _idea how many harebrained schemes he's talked me into over the years."

"Hey!" Draco protested, "I was not the only mastermind behind those plans. If I remember correctly, you were the brain-trust in a lot of them." Draco scratched his head, "No, wait. That's giving you _way_ too much credit…"

Harry smacked him, "Idiot," he muttered affectionately.

Draco mock glared at him while rubbing his arm, but he quickly turned his attention back to Carrie, "Now, my dear, where were we?"

Carrie smiled and leaned in closer to him, "I think we were just about…here," she whispered and touched her lips softly to his. He grabbed her and crushed his mouth forcefully to hers. Carrie moaned.

Becky paled and Harry made gagging motions with his finger. "Let's just leave them to it, eh?" Harry suggested weakly. Becky nodded eagerly and they quickly joined Ronald Weasley, Hermione Granger, and Neville Longbottom a little further down the table.

"There you are!" Hermione cried, jumping up and flinging her arms around Becky, "You were so involved in seeing Harry before, you missed me and Ron completely!"

"I'm sorry!" Becky said, "and I was looking forward to seeing you, too!"

"It's ok," Ron smiled, as he also stood up and wrapped her in a friendly hug, "it's just great to see you. Remember, you're one of my favorite people. Anyone who can put Draco in his place is."

Becky laughed softly, remembering the comment she'd made during her last visit. She turned to Neville, "Hi, Nev. It's nice to see you again." Neville smiled, but said nothing as he was too busy with his toast. Becky sat down next to Harry, who took her hand under the table, and turned her attention back to Ron and Hermione, "I'd introduce you to my best friend, Carrie Russo, but well, her mouth is otherwise occupied." They all looked down the table at the hormonal sandwich that was Carrie and Draco. Ron snickered.

But apparently, Carrie had heard Becky's comment because she tore her mouth from Draco's to squeal, "I'm Becky's friend, Carrie. It's really great to meet you all," and her mouth was back on Draco's.

Becky chuckled and turned to Harry, "So, what's going on today?"

Harry, who'd been shaking confetti from his hair, shrugged, "Well, it's Friday, so that means we have Charms, Transfiguration, and Double Potions, all with the Slytherins."

"Oh, well, Carrie will be pleased at least," Becky said sarcastically. Ron snickered again.

"Anyway," Harry continued pleasantly, "there's also a Valentine's Dance tonight. It was Lockhart's idea, but it should still be fun, if you're there, at least. You'll go with me, right?"

"Oh, I don't know. I was planning on going with someone else." At the panicked look on Harry's face, she laughed, "Oh, don't be daft! I was kidding! Of course I'll go with you!" Harry turned red. Ron and Hermione grinned.

"Well, if we want to make it to Charms on time, we had better be off now," Hermione said swiftly as she hurriedly stood. Becky leapt up as well, and the two girls were off, talking about classes and homework. Harry rolled his eyes and he and Ron followed weakly in their wake.

Everyone forgot about Carrie and Draco who, because no one alerted them of the time, were ten minutes late to Charms. Hmm, wonder what they were doing for those ten minutes?

&#&

"Swish and flick, Miss Smith. Yes, yes…excellent! If you had magic blood running through your veins, you'd make an incredible witch, my dear. Yes, you wou- Mr. Longbottom, not like that! It'll catch fire…" and Professor McGonagall hurried away. Becky turned and beamed at Harry, who smiled back and gave his girlfriend a quick peck on the check for a job well done. Becky turned around to see how Carrie was doing and she couldn't help but chuckle at what she saw: Carrie was holding Draco's wand and his arms were around her, his hand gently guiding her wrist movements while he murmured quietly into her ear. Those two sure had hit it off.

Earlier, Professor Flitwick had let her and Carrie be the test subjects of the Advanced Levitating Charms the class was practicing, so they had spent an hour floating around the Charms classroom. And now Professor McGonagall had shown them how to perform the spell the class was learning, and though they couldn't actually do the magic, it was still fun to know what to do. All in all, it had been a perfect day. But there was one problem: Lockhart and his little minions.

They were _everywhere_ and boy, were they _annoying_. They interrupted class almost constantly, to either deliver a valentine or just to pelt them with confetti and candy hearts and twang their badly tuned harps. Becky was really starting to worry that they were going to ruin the Valentine's Dance. She'd urged Harry to do something, but no matter how pathetic Lockhart was, he was Harry's teacher and he couldn't outright defy him, especially since Dumbledore had trusted him with having guests. Becky knew she had to do something, but she just didn't know what yet.

"Ok class, that will be all. No homework for tonight due to the dance. Have a Happy Valentine's Day." Becky swore McGonagall looked straight at her when she said that.

Harry took her hand and they walked out of the classroom, Carrie and Draco trailing along slowly after them. "Great," Harry muttered, "now we have Potions."

"Eww," Becky scrunched up her nose, "he's the one person I haven't met. And I wish I didn't have to."

"Well, you could wait in the common room…"

"No. Don't be silly. Of course I'll go with you, Harry. The idea of Snape just scares me, that's all."

"Well, if the idea scares you, wait till you meet the real thing," Harry grinned wickedly. Becky cringed.

"Hey," Draco came up alongside them, Carrie on his arm, "I like Snape. Why doesn't anyone else?"

"Maybe because Snape's a right bastard?" Carrie supplied helpfully.

"You know, she's actually not so bad," Harry said cheerfully, smiling widely at Carrie.

Carrie and Draco fell back behind them again, now in a heated discussion about the pros and cons of one Severus Snape. "Well, at least now we know they can do more than kiss," Carrie whispered confidentially to Harry, who grinned.

"Yea, and let's see how long it lasts," Harry whispered back. And no sooner had they entered the Potions dungeon and taken their seats then Carrie was back in Draco's lap, her lips glued to his. "See!" Harry said wisely. Becky rolled her eyes.

The door banged open and in walked a man dressed all in black. "Mr. Malfoy! Kindly unattach your lips from our guest's and pay attention to the lesson. Just because it's Valentine's Day does not give you a free reign over your libido in this class." Draco hastily placed Carrie in the chair next to his while Carrie shot him a look that clearly said 'told-you-so.' Draco shrugged.

"Now I realize we have guests today and it is Valentine's Day, so I expect the lot of you to be even stupider and more incompetent than usual. But just pay attention and brew this _very simple_ potion," and he proceeded to write the ingredients and steps on the board. They all started their potions and Becky and Carrie could actually help since no _real_ magic was involved (when Harry had pointed that out to Snape, some veins in his head had throbbed rather dangerously).

About three quarters of the way through class, three of the mini Lockhart cherubs burst in and started singing a valentine message to Seamus Finnigan, who turned bright red, but nevertheless looked quite pleased. After they finally left, Becky heard Snape muttering, "Lock all the lot in a closet, that's what I should do…" Becky grinned. Snape had given her an idea.

&#&

"So, we'll go and get ready for the dance and meet you in the common room," Hermione said briskly as they neared Gryffindor Tower. Draco had already veered off to go to the Slytherin dungeons and he was going to meet them in their common room in an hour.

Becky was starting to panic. She still hadn't seen Lockhart and she couldn't put her plan into action until she ran into him. Speaking of Lockhart…

"Hello everyone! Love is in the air I see! Well, I hope my friends and I here had something to do with it! Just wait until the dance! I have something even bigger planned!" Everyone winced at that. Becky eyed Lockhart and what looked to be most of his cherub force: she had to act now or she'd never get another chance.

She grabbed Carrie's arm and rushed forward, "Hi, Professor Lockhart!" she gushed, "Harry's told me so much about you and I've _really_ wanted to meet you, and now I finally am!" Lockhart beamed, but before he could say anything, she drove on, "But I've got some bad news for you, Professor!"

"Bad news? On Valentine's Day! I think not! What can I do to make this bad news good?"

Becky darted forward and whispered something in his ear and he nodded and snapped his fingers, summoning all the remaining cherubs to him. He smiled widely at them all and then barreled forward into a room on their right. After all the cherubs were in, Becky jumped to the door and threw the deadbolt. She stepped back, smiling triumphantly, to find everyone staring at her. "What?"

"That was amazing, Beck," Carrie said quietly, in awe of her best friend.

"Yea, it really was," Ron agreed, grinning widely.

"Wow, Becky," Harry whispered, as he gathered her into his arms, "you've saved the day. The dance will be a million times better without Lockhart there. You're my hero," and he gave her a sweet kiss on the lips. Draco and Carrie whooped.

&#&

"Well, this has sure been a lot of fun," Carrie said enthusiastically to Becky.

"Yea, it has been. Me, I got to see Hogwarts again, learn spells, and lock teachers in classrooms. You, well, you got to kiss Draco Malfoy a whole lot."  
"I know," Carrie said dreamily as Harry and Draco arrived back with their drinks. They were at the dance, which was, by the way, _awesome_ minus the whole Lockhart factor, and had settled at a table in the corner to rest their sore feet after lots and lots of dancing.

Becky smiled gratefully at Harry as he handed her a butterbeer. She then watched the other couples dancing for a while. Everyone was so happy. And honestly, it was almost all because of her.

She looked up, startled, when she felt an arm on her shoulder, "Would you care to dance?" Harry asked politely, indicating the slow song that had just come on with a wave of his hand.

Becky smiled, "I'd love to," and they walked onto the floor. Carrie and Draco followed them and Becky saw Carrie put her head on Draco's shoulder. She sighed happily: it had really worked out for those two, hadn't it?

But Harry must have mistaken her sigh for a sad one because he asked, "What's wrong? Aren't you having fun?"

Becky laughed softly, "Of course I am! This is wonderful! That was a happy sigh, Harry!" Harry smiled and held her close. "You know," Becky said, "I'm really going to miss you after I leave tonight."

"I miss you already," Harry murmured, stroking her hair.

"Don't," Becky breathed, "I'm right here," and she leaned up and kissed him softly. He pulled her even closer to him and wrapped her completely in his arms, deepening the kiss. When they pulled back for need of oxygen, Becky felt dizzy and lightheaded. She put her head on Harry's shoulder and he whispered in her ear, "Don't worry. We'll see each other again shortly. Dumbledore was making noise about letting both you and Carrie visit on your birthdays. And they aren't all that far away."

"Yea," Becky pouted, "but Carrie's is before mine."

"I'm sure she'll let you come with her."

"Of course she will. But that story won't be about us."

"Every story's about us, love."

"I like that."

"What?"

"When you called me love. I liked that."

"Well, I'll call you that more often then, love."

Becky smiled, "So, I guess this is our happy ending for now, huh?"

"Yes, it is. And they danced happily ever after," and he spun her around, which gave her a perfect view of…

"Oh my _God_, Carrie and Draco are at it _again_."

_Fin._

**A/N:** SO?…was it okie dokie?…i hope you liked it…please REVIEW and i _may_ write another story for the series (actually…i _will_ be writing a sequel most likely…but still review to encourage me!)…for all of you who are waiting for the next chap of _Knock First, Damn-it!_ i'm soooooo sorry!…i'm still working on the third chap because my muse abandoned me…it will be posted soon (i swear!) and chap 4 will (hopefully) be posted soon after…please don't be mad at me!…also…i'm not gonna post _For the Love of Harry_ yet cause obviously i can barely handle one ongoing story…i'll wait awhile…hopefully you'll think it's worth the wait!…ok…yea…REVIEW!…cheers.


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